4 comments:

It can go the other way. I experienced the first part. Then one day I was sent to a classroom full of parents, stood on a wobbly table and told to sing with no preparation, no accompaniment and no idea what to sing. Hence I never got to part two and hate performing for crowds unless I'm hiding in a choir, orchestra or similarly large group...

Our parents quit asking us to perform after we did our own play (with our own script) for the grandparents. It wasn't the story, just our choice of words. We needed to rhyme and we'd seen a word soaped on a neighbors' window at Halloween that worked perfectly. It rhymed with with the little yellow rubber.... Well, you get the idea. We tried to explain that it was just a different kind of bird, but somehow that didn't fix the problem.

I wish my parents had made me perform for guests. Speaking in front of people makes me nervous and I can't execute what is in my head.

Growing up, my entertainment was mostly Looney Tunes, and the like. When I was seven, though, I walked into the living room and sat down with my mom while she was watching Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. After five minutes I proclaimed - this is the funniest show I've ever seen. It was then that I knew I wanted to be clever for a living.

Now, over 30 years later, I still shy away from trying to entertain strangers. My parents are no longer in a position to force me to, so instead I get, "You know what your problem is? You just don't believe in yourself." - which sounds like good advice, but isn't really helpful to me or anyone else except maybe Descartes.

In the back of my head I always think about going to an open mic night, but I'm pretty sure I'd vomit on stage. Maybe I should just start with a song for everyone at Thanksgiving.